


When you are not fed love on a silver spoon, you learn to lick it off knives

by angelwithasaxophone



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Apocalypse Prevented, Blood and Injury, Could be Klaus/Diego but it's not really intended to be, Diego Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Diego Hargreeves-centric, Fear, Fear of doctors, Hurt Diego Hargreeves, Hurt/Comfort, I love him so much okay, Just me projecting some favourite tropes onto my favourite characters, Klaus is a good brother, Not Canon Compliant, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Stuttering Diego Hargreeves, vulnerable Diego Hargreeves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2020-07-12 02:53:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19939021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelwithasaxophone/pseuds/angelwithasaxophone
Summary: The Umbrella Academy goes on a mission (organised by Luther) and Diego has a really tough time when he sees something that makes him think of Eudora. He then gets injured and has to cope with his fear of all things medical, as well as his even greater fear of vulnerability. Features Luther being a bit of a dick but not intentionally, as well as Klaus being a sweetheart, and a range of the dynamics between the siblings, that they're trying to mend. I may have majorly overused commas,,,,but I love Diego and I'm exploring that in this piece.





	1. Chapter 1

‘Diego! Get it together, what are you doing?’ Luther’s harsh voice cut through the ringing in Diego’s ears. His chest was constricted, he couldn’t take a breath any deeper than short gasps. Reality felt so far away, as indulgent memories swam through his head, the sound of her voice, the touch of her hands, her thoughtful, expressive eyes and the way that they would light up when her soft lips curled into a smile. But for all her gentleness and care, her strength, determination and resolve were the sharp edges of her blazing passion. Blinking hurriedly, face frozen in a mask, Diego pulled his gaze away from the badge emblazoned on the uniform of the officer splayed at his feet. The woman, whose mangled body was curled grotesquely into ground, was not even from the same police academy that Eudora and Diego had attended (one more successfully than the other). But still, the sight of her had evoked the emotions that seemed to be bubbling at the surface of Diego’s control almost constantly. Throughout his childhood, he had learnt to push his feelings down deep, that his sensitivity made him weak and that it was something to hide. The only exceptions to his violently consolidated rules were Mom, and later, Eudora. The only ones who had ever seemed to care about him. Grief threatened to surface once again, so, calling on every last ounce of his strength, Diego pressed his hands to the wall behind him, grounding his racing mind and heart.   
The Umbrella Academy stood in a dark alley, littered with the bodies (in varying states of life and consciousness) of police officers and crazed, armed criminals. Luther had called the team into action, giving very few details of the nature of the mission. While it left them somewhat unprepared, the team – despite having made significant progress after uniting to end the apocalypse – still struggled to get through more than a few sentences of conversation before an argument broke out.   
‘Let’s get out of here,’ ordered Luther, considering their job to be done now that the fighting had elapsed. Allison nodded with vigour, seemingly hoping to avoid any further altercations with the individuals around them. Five appeared unperturbed by the proceedings, his priorities were always more centred towards the availability of coffee in the near future. Vanya, who had shown impressive control over her powers, was now leaning against the wall, evidently fatigued from the energy had exerted. Diego gave a brief nod, wanting nothing more than to lock himself in his room and suffer in solitude.   
‘Wait.’ Klaus held up his hand, and attention turned to him. ‘They’re almost all unconscious, I can only sense her,’ he said, gesturing to the woman in front of Diego, who had been too far gone when they arrived to have any hope.   
‘Then let’s go, Klaus, before they wake up.’ Ben’s voice was soft, but his form was corporeal, emanating a soft blue light.   
A general chorus of affirmation echoed from the 7, and they reached for Five’s arms, preparing to teleport back home. As their presence in the alleyway began to fade, a sudden movement erupted from below Diego. A filth-covered man with a snarling grin pulled a pocket-knife from inside his coat and stabbed desperately. Within an instant though, he was the lone conscious figure in the alley, accompanied only by his knocked-out companions and enemies, as well as a splatter of blood falling from mid-air, to pool on the ground, the sweet sign of revenge that confirmed the man’s knife had hit its target.


	2. Chapter 2

‘Augh!’ Diego groaned in pain as he hit the solid ground outside the Hargreeves’ mansion. A thick stream of blood oozed from his shaking left hand, where a deep gash had split apart his flesh. He held the punctured wound tightly, in an attempt to stem the bleeding. Nausea swirled through his stomach, and a dizzy buzzing ricocheted around his head. He looked up, the others were staring at him in horror, faces paling and eyes wide. Luther reached out a large hand, his eyes full of concern and care that Diego had never seen before when they looked at each other. He flinched away from Luther’s touch, and saw the expression change to something akin to sadness.   
Diego felt like a deer caught in headlights. The shocked attention he was getting made his body itch with discomfort. Flustered, his face reddened, and his breaths became shaky. ‘I- I’m…I’m fi- fine,’ he stammered, unconvincingly. ‘I’ll jus- just get a… a ban- bandage’.   
He turned and stumbled inside. Allison, Vanya and Klaus immediately moved to follow him, while Luther and Five exchanged a moment of connection, feeling the tension of social ineptitude in sensitive situations.   
‘Hold on,’ Luther urged, reaching forward to pull the others back, allowing Diego space to retreat into the house. Allison gave him a look of annoyance and shrugged his hand off. ‘We need to take him to a hospital,’ Luther insisted. Vanya bit her lip, thinking back to how scared Diego always was of the home doctor that Reginald would summon to the mansion when they were children. She knew he took pride in his toughness and strength, but she suspected that there was insecurity hidden behind the man who was insistent that he could fight off any injury or illness unassisted. Sharing a quick glance with Allison, she knew that the same thought had crossed her sister’s mind – there was no way Diego would go to hospital.   
‘I doubt he’d let anyone except Mom or his girlfriend touch him, let alone take care of him,’ said Vanya, voicing the concern that the siblings slowly nodded in agreement. Luther was scowling, he was frustrated but he knew that she was right.   
‘Well we have to do something,’ reasoned Five, ‘Let’s go inside and at least talk to him, then we’ll figure out how to get him some adequate help’. The group turned to enter the house, noticing Klaus, who was already picking at the door in an attempt to overcome his complete lack of keys, while grumbling softly to Ben. Pushing him aside, Luther forced the door open and marched inside, closely followed by the others, who immediately dispersed to search for Diego.   
It was Klaus who found him, leaning against the bathtub in the upstairs bathroom, his hand wrapped in a shirt that his blood was already soaking through. As Klaus burst into the room with a triumphant yell of shock, Diego cast his gaze upwards, eyes wide with fear. Perching on the edge of the bathtub, Klaus extended his hand so it rested beside by Diego’s shaking shoulder. Klaus opened his mouth to suggest that they call an advice hotline to ask about first-aid, but before he could share his thought Luther crashed into the room – Allison and Vanya both clinging to his arms, trying to hold him back.   
‘Nice one Lu,’ snarled Five, appearing on Diego’s other side. ‘I loved the part where you went completely against the plan that EVERYONE else had decided was the best course of action’. A sardonic smile spread across his face, but his eyes were fiery, blazing with frustration.   
Luther didn’t acknowledge him, but his movements had lost their confidence. ‘I called the paramedics,’ he informed Diego, whose face was rapidly paling; whether from blood loss or fear it was impossible to tell. ‘Don’t worry, I told them that you’re sc- (Allison elbows him in the ribs) -um that you don’t like doctors’. Luther grimaced, realising now why everyone was mad at the way he’d tried to take charge.   
Closing his eyes, Diego leaned backwards into Klaus’ touch, feeling the hand grip his shoulder comfortingly. Droplets of sweat ran down his face and he felt his heart hammering in his chest, making it hard to breathe. ‘I- I can’t-t do thi-is,’ he muttered, his stutter inhibiting his speech, as it always did when he got emotional. He brought his uninjured hand up to his face and rubbed at his eyes, wishing his head would stop spinning so he could run away from everyone’s stares, and the misplaced care of medical professionals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lol so I didn't really know how to post chapters and I kind of wrote the whole thing and then split it up so hopefully the formatting works out, I think I just meant for the end notes from Chapter 1 to apply for all of these oops. Hope you liked this chapter :)


	3. Chapter 3

The blare of ambulance sirens slashed through the air, striking even more panic into Diego’s heart. I need to go. I need to go. I need to go. I have to escape. I have to escape. I have to escape. I’m scared. I’m scared. I’m scared. His thoughts consumed him, sending his body into convulsed shaking. ‘Do- Don’t look a-at me like tha-a a-t’ He hissed at Luther, trying desperately to regain the slightest feeling of control. Luther’s expression changed to a frustrated hopelessness. As he turned to leave, the other followed him – all except Klaus – who tightened his grip on Diego’s shoulder, making a startled noise of confusion.   
‘We’re not leaving,’ Vanya turned back around to give them a soft smile, ‘We’re just going down to talk to the paramedics, they’re here’. At her words, Diego’s stomach lurched, and he became hyperaware of the severe pain in his hand, which felt like it was still being stabbed, over and over again. Shuddering, he turned to Klaus, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. Klaus slid down to the floor and put his arm across Diego’s shoulders, unsure exactly how to comfort the man who had spent years actively avoiding contact and building up walls in every area of his life. Diego leant his head against Klaus’ chest, however, so he pulled him into a hug, holding him tightly in the hopes to make up for the years they hadn’t been in each other’s lives. He ran his hands over Diego’s firm but shaking shoulders, wishing he knew how to help him better. He saw Allison and Vanya return to the room, followed by two women in uniform: the paramedics. He nudged Diego, who turned around and immediately curled in on himself. Vanya stepped in to explain the conversation she had on the phone with the emergency call operator, who had informed her that the paramedics would likely be able to handle the situation onsite, meaning that they wouldn’t have to go to a hospital.   
The paramedics knelt down by Diego’s side, examining the wound and explaining they would need to clean it and then give him stitches to close it. Shuddering, Diego agreed, knowing that their intentions were a mirror to Eudora’s morals: they wanted to help him because they truly cared about people. Klaus reached around to turn on the tap, and one of the paramedics guided his hand under the water, washing the blood from the cut. Diego turned his head away from the patch of crimson that was already staining around the drain. He felt Klaus’ hand find his, squeezing gently, giving him something to focus on other than the throbbing pain in his other hand. His vision was fading in and out, drifting on the surface of consciousness, painfully close to fainting.   
‘We’re going to anesthetise your hand before we give stitches,’ said the other paramedic, smiling kindly at Diego, who was visibly on the verge of nervous collapse. He nodded, closing his eyes tightly. Klaus placed a gentle hand on his face in an attempt to smooth out the stressed frown creasing his features. The paramedics worked efficiently, and within a matter of minutes they had stitched the gaping wound in Diego’s flesh, before binding the evidence of his injury in a bandage. Washing their hands and turning to Vanya, they began explaining the details of further care and recovery, before bidding the family goodbye as they received contact from their dispatcher.   
As soon as the procedure had finished, Diego’s stress had been somewhat alleviated, leaving room for exhaustion to suddenly flood in. He buried his head into Klaus’ chest, burrowing into his arms, the events of the day had already destroyed any chance he had at an illusion of carelessness. Smiling, Klaus held him close, murmuring softly about how proud Diego made him.   
The rest of the academy were downstairs pretending that they weren’t all thoroughly shaken, while watching a movie on their enormous flat screen TV, their first addition to the mansion after diverting the apocalypse and gaining ownership of the house. Diego, leaning on Klaus for support, walked into the room, flopping down on the couch. At their entrance, an array of comforting smiles was shot in their direction. Looking determinedly at the ground, Luther tossed a wrapped-up blanket to Diego, who unravelled it to find a note with a well-deserved ‘Sorry :(‘ inside.  
Despite experiencing a mental rollercoaster that felt as though it had made up for his emotionally stunted development in one day, Diego was feeling slightly better, curled up on the couch with a family who he was slowly learning to love and trust again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay congrats for getting to the end! Chat to me in the comments and let me know what you think!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope y'all liked this one! My first Umbrella Academy fic! Feedback/suggestions/prompts are appreciated, or if you just want to chat about anything in the comments. I have a list of Umbrella Academy fics that I want to write in the future, so let me know if that's something you'd like to see! I'm considering doing a series of fics based on Tumblr prompts that I find funny. Anyways, thanks for reading, ily <3


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